The Hell's Angels' outlaw hey-day peaked about 40 years ago at Altamont, but pop-culture and ingrained stereotypes have conspired to paint bikers as a unifromerly brutish group. But a new survey actually shows that in a lot of ways, motorcycle owning men in Miami are a bit more sensitive than their non-biking counterparts.
Progrssive, the largest seller of motorcycle insurance in the U.S., recently conducted a survey of men who ride motorcycles vs. men who don't. Here's some of the more interesting tidbits they found from their Miami respondents.
Eleven percent of Miami bikers said they'd share their deepest feeling with their mom. Which isn't a majority, but it is a lot more than the just 2% of non-bikers who would. Conversely, zero bikers would share their feelings with a therapist. I guess that explains all those 'Mom' tattoos.
Forty-two percent of bikers in the city are involved with a charity or cause, compared to just 47 percent of male pedestrians or automobile-ists. Twenty-one percent are passionate about causes involving animals and wildlife, compared to just 9% of regular men. Could a line of vegan-friendly bike wear be far off?
Sixteen percent of bikers would tear up at falling in love, compared to just 5% of other guys. Maybe it's because they're listening to so many country diva. The exact same percentage of bikers admit to listening to country divas Dolly Parton and Faith Hill, compared to the 5% of others.
So, if you pass by a biker bar somewhere in Miami, and see a guy crying while proposing to his girlfriend with "I Will Always Love You" playing in the background while his dog and mother look on, don't be too surprised.
